Frequency controller for a monolithic clock generator and timing/frequency refrence

Abstract

Exemplary embodiments of the invention provide a clock generation apparatus, system, and method, which include power management. The apparatus is couplable to second circuitry which has a clock input terminal and an inverted clock output terminal. An exemplary apparatus comprises a clock generator, a sensor, and a processor. The clock generator provides a clock signal on a first terminal which is couplable to the clock input terminal of the second circuitry. The sensor is coupled to a second terminal which is couplable to the inverted clock output terminal, and detects a power conservation mode and a power resumption mode of the second circuitry. The processor is adapted to reduce power to the clock generator and to provide a first predetermined voltage or a second predetermined voltage to the first and second terminals in response to the detection of the power conservation mode, and to increase power to the clock generator in response to the detection of the power resumption mode.

Description

technical field [0001] The present invention relates generally to oscillatory or clocked signal generation, and more particularly to discrete clock signal generators and timing / frequency references that are self-exciting, self-referencing, accurate over manufacturing process, voltage and temperature, and have low jitter. Background technique [0002] An accurate clock generator or timing reference typically relies on a crystal oscillator, such as a quartz oscillator, which provides mechanical resonance at a specific frequency. The difficulty with such crystal oscillators is that they cannot be manufactured as part of the same integrated circuit (IC) that will be driven by its clock signal. For example, microprocessors such as the Intel Pentium processor require a separate clock IC. For this reason, virtually every circuit that requires an accurate clock signal requires an off-chip clock generator. [0003] There are several consequences for such a non-integrated solution. ...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

For example, ring, relaxation, and phase-shift oscillators can provide clock signals suitable for some low-sensitivity applications, but cannot provide the higher accuracy required by more complex electronic circuits, such as those requiring high processing power or data communication. required accuracy

In addition, these clock generators or oscillators typically exhibit considerable frequency shift, jitter, have relatively low Q, and suffer from other distortions due to noise and other disturbances

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